Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a work support apparatus capable of adjusting the posture of a work.
Description of the Related Art
As a support apparatus for supporting a work like a pallet for an engine when the work is conveyed by a conveyor or the like, there are proposed support apparatuses for holding a work in a cantilevered state (Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 7-41158 and 2006-263860). In the support apparatus that holds a work in the cantilevered state, changing only the portion that holds the work in the cantilevered state suffices when changing the work, and the support apparatus need not wholly be changed.
When performing various kinds of operations such as assembling parts to a work or processing or inspecting it, holding the work with its operation target portion facing the operator is convenient from the viewpoint of operations. To do this, there are also proposed support apparatuses including a tilt mechanism capable of rotating a work about a horizontal axis (Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 2007-203385 and 2010-155307).
To increase the operation efficiency, the operations are preferably performed continuously for many parts of a work. However, the tilt mechanisms described in PLTs 3 and 4 include an axis configured to make the work pivot, and the side portion of the work on the holding side (the side connected to the support apparatus) is closed by the support apparatus. To perform operations for the side portion of the work on the holding side, the work needs to be temporarily detached from the support apparatus, resulting in a decrease in the operation efficiency.